{"id":83934,"date":"2013-10-17T08:17:00","date_gmt":"2013-10-17T07:17:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/?guid=edfe4a2588ff6e016364bd3220b6128d"},"modified":"2013-10-17T08:17:00","modified_gmt":"2013-10-17T07:17:00","slug":"appalling-human-rights-abuses-in-bahrain-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/editorials\/appalling-human-rights-abuses-in-bahrain-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Appalling Human Rights Abuses in Bahrain"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Appalling Human Rights Abuses in Bahrain<\/b><\/div>\n
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by Stephen Lendman<\/div>\n
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Since February 2011, Bahrainis challenged state terror policies heroically. Brutal crackdowns followed. They continue.<\/div>\n
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They include mass arrests, imprisonments, torture, kangaroo court trials, and overall ruthlessness. <\/div>\n
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Bahrain’s ruling Al Khalifa monarchy is a close US ally. Washington provides material support. It’s one of the world’s most despotic regimes. Ruthlessness defines its policies. More on that below.<\/div>\n
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According to the State Department’s 2012 human rights report<\/span><\/a>,<\/div>\n
serious human rights abuses persist. <\/div>\n
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They include “citizens inability to change their government peacefully; arrest and detention of protesters on vague charges, in some cases leading to their torture in detention; and lack of due process in trials of political and human rights activists, medical personnel, teachers, and students, with some resulting in harsh sentences.”<\/div>\n
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“Other significant human rights problems included arbitrary deprivation of life; arrest of individuals on charges relating to freedom of expression; reported violations of privacy; and restrictions on civil liberties, including freedom of speech, press, assembly, association, and some religious practices.” <\/div>\n
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“The government sometimes imposed and enforced travel bans on political activists.” <\/div>\n
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“Discrimination on the basis of gender, religion, nationality, and sect persisted, especially against the Shia population.” <\/div>\n
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“There were reports of domestic violence against women and children.” <\/div>\n
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“Trafficking in persons and restrictions on the rights of foreign workers continued to be significant problems.”<\/div>\n
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In more detail, the State Department cited:<\/div>\n
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